Zwift RunPod Review | Is it TERRIBLE?

#zwift The Zwift RunPod is the brand new footpod from Zwift, allowing users to get on the platform as cost effectively as possible. Having bought out the company that made the original Milestone Pod, how good is the new RunPod from Zwift? Is it any better than the original Milestone?

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[FilmMyRun]

Hopefully I have been fair in my assessment of the Zwift RunPod. What do you think? Some people may have misunderstood my comments regarding the battery. It does not need a new battery every single run. If it's working fine for you then carry on as you are. If you are having problems then don't let it be a battery issue. Make sure you have a fresh battery in the pod. I change mine regularly, just to be sure.

[AlexJ]

I have had the Zwift Runpod for 4 years and it does exactly what I wanted it to, move the avatar. I don't really care if it is not 100% accurate, I only care about accuracy when running outdoors. I have now done of 1900 klms with the Runpod so reckon I have gotten fairly good value from it. Battery requires replacement every 6 months or so, and never had the connection difficulties others talk about. Obviously Stryd is better, but shipped to Australia for about $30.00 all up I can't complain.

[gurya]

I have been cycling on zwift and now bought a treadmill for running. Your videos have been great getting me going. Thanks so much

[momagic]

I’ve had the milestone pod for a year and totally agree with your review / assessment - nice work 👍🏻

[DeChurcher]

4:41 seems like your Zwift Pod is attached upside down!
On the Pictures of the Zwift-Homepage, is the dimpled area heading to the toes.
Is this affecting the accuracy?

[trumptman]

Apologies in advance for being so long winded. I’m thankful your efforts here and know there is no manual or checklist for how to do a review. So please understand that any suggestions are meant only to be helpful and not critical.

I think it important to approach this review from the perspective of the person likely to purchase this item. As you noted it is likely to be used by someone new to Zwift, possibly new to running and likely new to the field of sports technology. The $30 cheap footpod has that as a likely customer profile.

So that customer is going to come at this with the following expectation per the video review....

Open the package and likely replace the included battery since it will be questionable.
To solve potential problems download an app with a name not at all related to the actual product (Milestone vs Zwift) and use that app to check on the firmware and battery status of the pod.
In Zwift expect marginal results that the three step calibration may make better or worse.

Now when you come at this from the beginner mindset it looks like a pretty high wall to scale to get an acceptable result if you like to run at one type of cadence and speed.

I suspect many of the issues with the Zwift footpod also relate to beginning level running or not being able to run at such a high level as yourself at a minimum. By that I mean newer folks likely engage in ‘inadvertent” intervals or do some walking. It would be interesting to see a follow up video where you try to generate the drops or stalls that so many people have encountered.

I watched a bit of your run club video where you used the Zwift Footpod. I admit I basically skipped around to the interval sections and you noted having to compensate using additional speed to hit the target. However a beginning or new runner might not be able to do this. What likely would occur is they would speed up, smash themselves a bit and then drop down to a walk or much slower pace for a bit to gain recovery. A follow up video along the lines of “not expert at tech or running” might generate some very different results.

Thanks for the time and effort on the review. Thanks for letting me add my two cents about your efforts and I appreciate what you’ve done.

[davidweiss]

just came across this..has the updates ever helped this thing in terms of calibration?

[kevinm]

This review reflects my experience almost 100%. I found the calibration did make it better, but much like he said, it seems to have a sweet spot in the middle where it is right on with your pace. Outside of that range, it's off anywhere from .2-.4 miles per hour. Whether that's a huge deal or not depends on you. I subscribe more for cycling, the running was just a bonus, so for 29 bucks you may be able to live with it. As of November 2019, I have no connection issues really- that would be a deal breaker for me.

[toddboucher]

will it work outside or is it for treadmill only

[mickaelburguet]

Thanks for the review. If the Zwift RunPod calibration tool doesn't work, and if I want to do mostly higher intensity runs (threshold runs), then which zwift compatible footpod do you recommend instead ?

[runnerfive]

i had the milestone at the start, it was shite for me . . . now i need it as the kids are grown up and seem to want to use my computer all of the time . . this is annoying as i usaully use ANT+ to connect which is perfect from Garmin, hoping my andrios with this can have be toally wireless so to speak.

[DamonVanDyken]

Where would you buy it from in Australia??

Its not cheap at all ! If you are in Europe and especially in Switzerland, Zwift charges an awful lot for delivery and additional charges that i ended up with a bill in my cart on checkout of more then 100, - $ ... so i decided not to buy. I did not find any other solution as Garmin is all ANT and Polar is not my Ecosystem. I used my Apple watch, but it just works on the iPhone and not on the iPad or bigger screens.
Its a pity that the treadmills in my Gym don’t support direct connection even if they have BT signal, buts just for their own LF App.
Anyway thanks for the review

[Peakabike]

Yep, the ZwiftPod/Milestone (or Garmin Pod) have to be calibrated for the pace you're running at unlike the Stryd, so you can't use it for distance but for pace it's generally going to be close enough. Stryd costs 10x and is maybe 10x more accurate...but still not accurate enough to be used for distance so...it only really makes sense to use if for power.

[JustinBlack]

You mentioned the Stryd footpod but do you have any experience with the Garmin footpod?

[melvinlai]

Hi will the Zwift Pod work on Android mobile pls?

I also use a Garmin Fenix 3 and when my bluetooth On my phone is on, will the Garmin steal the bluetooth connection?

[miguelesteban]

Can it connect to garmin watches? Also does it have app where we can review data like the milestone pod?

[DJChipsandGarlic]

so even if i just used zwift pod to run at my bog standard jog pace (6mins per km) the zwift should be sufficient for that?

[philipnelza]

I have a smart treadmill which connects to Zwift (via Bluetooth) for the speed data. But I would like use the Zwift pod for cadence data on the Zwift screen. Will this work? I use my phone to connect to Zwift. So will the Zwift app on my phone pick up the Bluetooth treadmill and the Bluetooth Zwift pod?

[Julie-myds]

I'm not very tech savvy. If I get the zwift foot pod, and an ant+ dongle for my laptop, will all that work together with my Garmin 245 as well? I'm not understanding :(